Southern Peony: 2018 Southern Peony Seedlings

Well, this year was a gorgeous year to capture some peony seedling photos. The neatest thing about seedlings is knowing that no one else in the world had the same peony as you. Deciding which ones are good enough to share with the world (and hopefully convince others of that same idea) is the hard part. I'm not sure how close I am into my first foray in that arena, but I thought I'd give you all a taste of what's growing in my peony seedling beds right now that excites me... These peonies are in order of bloom date.

Peony Seedling: P. Rockii Lavender

Bloom Date: Week 1 (Very Early)
RHS Color: Pink Violet 75C
Seed Planted: 2013
First Year Bloomed: 2017
Parents: Unknown (Purchased Seed)

P. Rockii Lavender Tree Peony Seedling
This gorgeous P. Rockii Lavender Tree Peony Seedling came from seed I purchased on Ebay from Cricket Hill Garden in 2013. It was the very first plant to bloom from the seeds they sent me. It actually first bloomed last year in 2017 (and somehow I missed getting an open bloom photo in its first year of bloom). Its first year sprouting was in 2014. So it bloomed in just 3 years! Also of all the seedlings they sent me, this one is the tallest. So this early blooming activity and increased height and size compared to its siblings really speaks to its vigor. I am planning to move this one this fall to a spot with more room, and a bit more sun to see what it can really do! This peony is a delight to grow since it is a very early bloomer, being only the 3rd peony of all my varieties to bloom in the spring. This gorgeous lavender pink color so early in the season is a welcome sight for sore eyes! Also none of the buds (so far) have suffered from a late spring frost. Wow! (Although it has only bloomed 2 years now, so I will have to continue to track its blooming habits.)

2013 P. Rockii Peony Seeds from Cricket Hill Garden
2018 P. Rockii Peony Seedling Has 2 Buds in Second Year of Bloom
2018 Third Peony Bloom of the Season - P. Rockii Lavender Tree Peony Seedling

P. Rockii Lavender Tree Peony Seedling

Peony Seedling: Early Pale Pink Double

Bloom Date: Week 3 (Early Mid)
RHS Color: Not Yet Rated
Seed Planted: 2008
First Year Bloomed: ? (first year double 2018)
Parents: 'Lavender Princess' X ?

Pale Pink Double Peony Seedling (Early)
I know this bloom photo looks a bit sad. I'm not sure if I caught a great photo of it or not. I'm hoping once I move this one it might do better. So the flower itself is not what interests me the most on this one, especially since this is the first time I've seen it bloom double. The most interesting thing about this seedling is the fact that it was the only double blooming in my yard at the time, April 22, 2018. No other double had yet to bloom. So this makes it seem like a rare occurrence to get such an early blooming lactiflora peony. Since this was the first year I've seen it bloom double, I need to move it to see if it continues to bloom double and bloom so early in the season. Also the flower and bush form needs to be checked when it is growing with adequate space.

Early Pale Pink Double Peony Seedling
at Bottom Center of Peony Seedling Bed

Peony Seedling: Mid Light Pink Semi-Double

Bloom Date: Week 5 (Mid Late)
RHS Color: Not Yet Rated
Seed Planted: ?
First Year Bloomed: ?
Parents: ?

Light Pink Semi-Double Peony Seedling (Mid)
This peony is also an early blooming seedling, this one being semi-double. It seems I failed to mark and capture data on this peony this year. So I'll need to pay better attention to it this spring to check the location and identity of this seedling. The semi-double light pink bloom is just gorgeous, and I can't wait to see how this one develops (and how the bush looks with lots of blooms on it). In this photo it kind of reminds me of Peony 'Silvia Saunders' (which I do not yet grow, so have only seen in photographs).

Peony Seedling: Mid White Anemone

Bloom Date: Week 5 (Mid Late)
RHS Color: White 155D
Seed Planted: 2013
First Year Bloomed: 2018
Parents: 'Pink Princess' X ?

White Anemone Peony Seedling (Mid)
1st Day Bloom
This pretty white peony seemed to 'pop' out of nowhere. This peony was the first to herbaceous seedling to bloom in my newer seedling bed, which I started planting in 2013. It is a cute anemone type peony, and it kind of reminds me of a white 'Gay Paree'. This is the first year it has bloomed, so I'm curious to see if it will change form next year.

White Anemone Peony Seedling (Mid)
2nd Day Bloom

Peony Seedling: Mid Late 'Lavender Ruffles' Semi-Double to Double

Bloom Date: Week 5-6 (Mid Late to Late)
RHS Color: Purple Pink N74C
Seed Planted: 2008
First Year Bloomed: 2014
Parents: 'Lavender Princess' X ?

'Lavender Ruffles' Peony Seedling
This peony which I've nicknamed 'Lavender Ruffles' has been a longtime favorite seedling of mine. It first impressed me with a semi-double bloom in 2014. Since that time it has been double and then back to semi-double and then it has even had some double, some semi-double on the same bush. I can't wait to see what it does next year! Maybe I will divide it next year to see how well it does with propagation. Peony 'Lavender Ruffles' is a seedling of 'Lavender Princess' from 2008. This peony is a later blooming peony. It is so nice to have a color like 'Lavender' with so many petals at a later time in the season! This peony seems to be quite floriferous with several blooms on each stem. Despite the multitude of blooms, the flowers seem to be able to stay off the ground. This one seems to be quite promising!

2014 Favorite Peony Seedling - Semi-Double Pink Violet
2014 Transplant Lavender Ruffles Peony Seedling
2015 Lavender Ruffles Peony Seedling Becomes Double

'Lavender Ruffles' Peony Seedling

Peony Seedling: Mid Late Light Pink Double

Bloom Date: Week 6 (Late)
RHS Color: Not Yet Rated
Seed Planted: ?
First Year Bloomed: ?
Parents: ?

Light Pink Double Peony Seedling
This peony is newly double for me. I'm not sure exactly when it started blooming, but it did have 3 large size very double blooms all on one stem this year. The flowers were so big and so heavy that all three of the massively-petaled flowers weighed down the single stem they were carried on until they bent the stem under their weight. I'm not sure if I noticed these blooms upon first opening. So I didn't bother taking a color reading until perhaps next year. It looks like I need to capture a few more data points about this seedling too.

Peony Seedling: Mid Late Hot Pink Double / Bomb

Bloom Date: Week 6 (Late)
RHS Color: Not Yet Rated
Seed Planted:
First Year Bloomed:
Parents: ?

This peony has a nice bright hot pink color (which I haven't seem to have color matched yet), and I like how late it blooms, but I'm just not sure about how well it can keep the flowers off the ground. I like that it has a late bloom season to add some color to the garden when the other peonies have finished. It kind of reminds me of 'Karl Rosenfield'. So I'd like to see how this one might be able to differentiate itself. My 'Karl Rosenfield' seems to be very susceptible to black spot/blight. Let's hope this peony is a bit more resistant.

2015 New Hot Pink Double in Peony Seedling Test Bed
2015 Transplant Promising Hot Pink Double Seedling

Hot Pink Double / Bomb Peony Seedling

Hot Pink Double / Bomb Peony Seedling Buds

Hot Pink Double / Bomb Peony Seedling

Sunday, November 11, 2018

2018 Southern Peony Seedlings